Ranbirraj "Raj" Kapoor, also known as The Show-Man, was an extremely successful and flamboyant film actor, producer and director of Hindi cinema.

Winner of nine Filmfare Awards, his films Awaara (1951) and Boot Polish (1954) were also nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Raj Kapoor was born in Peshawar, to actor Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Devi Kapoor. He was the eldest of the six children in the Pashto Punjabi speaking family.

Ranbirraj "Raj" Kapoor, also known as The Show-Man, was an extremely successful and flamboyant film actor, producer and director of Hindi cinema.

Winner of nine Filmfare Awards, his films Awaara (1951) and Boot Polish (1954) were also nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Raj Kapoor was born in Peshawar, to actor Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Devi Kapoor. He was the eldest of the six children in the Pashto Punjabi speaking family.

At 11, he appeared in the 1935 film Inquilab. After acting in several films the next 12 years, Raj Kapoor's hit the headlines with Neel Kamal (1947) opposite Madhubala in her first role as a leading lady.

In 1948, at the age of 24, he set up his own studio, R. K. Films, and became the youngest film director of his time. His first movie as producer, director and star was the 1948 film Aag. It was also the first of his many films with actress Nargis. However the film failed at the box office. In 1949 he once again starred alongside Nargis and Dilip Kumar in Mehboob Khan's classic blockbuster Andaz that was his first major success as an actor.

He went on to produce, direct and star in several box office hits such as Barsaat (1949), Awaara (1951), Shree 420 (1955), Chori Chori (1956) and Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (1960).

In 1964 he produced, directed and starred in Sangam, which was his first film in colour. It was also his last major success as a leading actor. He moved onto directing and starring in his ambitious 1970 film, Mera Naam Joker, a box office disaster. Despite this, Raj himself regarded this film as his favourite.

He tasted success in 1971 co-starring with his eldest son Randhir Kapoor in Randhir's acting and directorial debut Kal Aaj Aur Kal (1971) that also starred Raj's father Prithviraj Kapoor.

From then on he acted in films as a character actor and focused on producing and directing films. He launched his second son Rishi Kapoor in Bobby (1973), which was directed by him. It was a huge box office success and introduced actress Dimple Kapadia. Through the 1970s and early 1980s he produced and directed films, which focused on the female protagonists: Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978) with Zeenat Aman, Prem Rog (1982) with Padmini Kolhapure and Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985) that introduced Mandakini.

Raj Kapoor's last major film appearance was in Vakil Babu (1982).

Raj Kapoor died of complications related to asthma in 1988 at 63. At the time of his death, he was working on the movie Henna (an Indo -Pakistan based love story). The film was later completed by his son, Rishi Kapoor and released in 1991. It became a huge success at the Box Office.

The nation honoured him with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award shortly before his death. There was thunderous ovation when President Venkataraman, who was aware of Kapoor's ill health, came down the stage to give the award to the legend.